Case Explained: AI in Criminal Justice: Why Governance Matters and How to Make It Work – Legal Aggregate – Legal Perspective

(Originally published in the Sentencing Matters Substack on March 26, 2026)

Artificial intelligence is no longer a distant or speculative technology in the criminal justice system. It is becoming part of its everyday machinery. Police departments use algorithmic tools to analyze digital evidence, look for patterns in crime and other data, and draft police reports. Prosecutors rely on AI software to manage discovery and support charging decisions. Courts encounter algorithmic risk assessments and large language models that promise to summarize records, draft documents, and assist with legal analysis. Across the system, AI is being woven into decisions that affect liberty itself.

I had the great privilege this past fall of working with a talented student research team at Stanford Law School to examine how to close the growing gap between the pace of technological change around artificial intelligence in criminal justice and the capacity of criminal justice institutions to govern it responsibly. The work was part of the law school’s Law and Policy Lab program, which gives students hands-on experience advising individuals, government agencies, and non-profit organizations about current policy issues in real time. Our team worked in partnership with the Council on Criminal Justice’s (CCJ) Task Force on Artificial Intelligence.

Continue reading the essay here.

Read the Policy Lab’s Report